Monday, March 15, 2010

War of the Walls

Kalani Engles

Searsville (48" x 60")

A woman who has collected my art for years recently got divorced from her second husband. Among the sources of incompatibility in their marriage was the fact that he didn’t like my art (or any art for that matter). Whenever she hung a piece of mine, he would complain about it for a while and then take it down. His job, however, required him to be out of town for extended periods. Whenever he was gone, she would hang my art again in the same place it was before. When he returned, he would again take it down. This went on for a couple of years until this and other conflicts convinced her to leave him.

It was not an amicable parting, but they were able to agree on a property settlement – with one exception. He insisted on keeping a large oil painting of mine, Searsville, that she had acquired while they were married. He claimed it had been purchased with community funds, and that the room where it (occasionally) hung would not be the same without it. No amount of argument would change his mind, and she eventually relinquished the painting. Did he experience an epiphany and suddenly fall in love with my work, or was this just his final shot in the war of the walls? Take a look at Searsville (48” x 60”) and decide for yourself.